A Friend in need is a Friend indeed.

Of course, even in his short career, Rémy had seen many sad cases. Women who had lost their children. Girls who had been physically abused. Men who had been scarred by war. However, it had been sometime since he had been so hands on with such a depressing story. He knew charts could often be sparing in detail and rather blunt, so it was worrying when he could pick up such a state of concern from the writing. Samuel had suffered a deep loss and he had been through something heart breaking. Now..Now he was probably a shell of the man he once was.

Padding down the corridors of bland doors with small numbers, he thought about how to approach this. He loved to talk with people and he loved to get inside their heads. Honestly, it seemed like this was what the man needed. He needed someone to listen to him. Although, patients were always so wary of him. So mistrusting. It was disheartening, but he could endear himself to a cactus.

As he reached the room he quickly jammed his key in the lock and opened the door with a jingle. "Bonjour?" He said in a chipper but unsure voice as he peeked in carefully. He had been caught by surprise many times as he walked in patient's rooms and it made him somewhat paranoid. It seemed uncomfortably dark in here, for so early in the day, he shut the door behind him and strode across the room to open the curtains.

Samuel sat against the metal railings that were his bed room and was staring off into the darkness. Whether he was aware of it or not he inhaled deeply and exhaled very slowly, his shoulders sagging as he did so.

It had always been his fault; his mothers cancer, his father's drinking, that he hadn't got a promotion in 4 years, and beyond a shadow of a doubt it was his fault that fifteen families were grieving. He sighed again like before. He sighed a lot now, almost as if the air was so disappointed in him it wanted to get out and reminded him of what he had done as it left.

When the doctor came into the room the only thing that moved where his eyes, sharply focusing on the man and watching him carefully almost waiting to give him a look of disgust. His eyes narrowed slightly as the light suddenly filled the room.

He remained quiet, watchful and unnervingly still.

Feeling more positive with some sunshine in the room, he peered out the window with a pleased smile and turned to direct this smile at Samuel. Taking a good look at him, he couldn't help but note that he was quite handsome. Very rugged. Undeterred by the sadness in the man's eyes and of course, the initial displeasure at Rémy's presence, he stepped closer. The smile still tugging at the corners of his mouth.

"Good morning, My name is Doctor Rémy Artois. You can jus' call me Rémy, I am also quite fond of nicknames." he grinned a little and waited for Samuel to introduce himself. Of course, the chart told him everything. However he thought it was creepy and weird to walk in a room acting as though you know someone. He liked to hear things from direct sources.

He blinked slowly at the man, not expecting him to be cheerful so much as obstinate and dreary like those who had him brought to Caring Hands in the first place.

"Doctor"

He inclined his head slowly, sighing almost on top of his quiet speech. He continued to watch the man who was free to come and go as he pleased. Not that it mattered to Samuel, he was quiet happy to hide away in his room, opting even to keep away from the other patients.

He was a murderer, he should keep away from everyone.

Expecting Remy to continue on and start telling him how he was going to try and help him.

He paused for a moment, still waiting for the introduction.

Realising it wasn't going to happen he pulled the chair from the corner of the room and sat backward on it, leaning over the front to continue smiling at Samuel. "So tell me, 'ow are you feeling zis morning? Mr....Uh...Oh dear, what was it again?" he chuckled softly and tilted his head, looking confused. He held out a hand over the chair and toward Samuel to be shook in greeting.

He sighed again. It was almost like his sighing was connected to almost every form of action he took. From thinking about something, responding to someone or even moving, that hopeless sigh had just become a part of him.

"...Sam..."

He took his time to say it, almost debating inwardly about whether or not her should have even spoken, slowly he reached out and took the others hand. No matter how he was currently feeling, his handshake was still strong and firm.
A remnant of his father drilling into him from a young age that a man should have a strong firm hand shake so people know that this is a man who knows what is going on and can handle anything that comes his way.

Taking note of the sighing, he made a scrawled note on his clipboard. He hated to do it, but it was difficult to treat so many patients and remember all the fine details of their visit.

The manliness did seem to ooze from that handshake, making his dainty flick of the wrist seem somewhat inadequate. With a nod of his head he repeated after the other man, "Sam, oui?" he propped his head on his hand. "I like it. Now, Sam. Tell me, 'ow have you been feeling lately? What have you been sinking about?"

How had he been feeling?

He stared past the doctor for a long moment, thinking about the question.

sigh

"...Lost?"

He shook his head then shruged. He wasn't sure if that was entirely corret, but it was enough for now.

He picked at some pilling on his grey sweat pants absently.

Staring back curiously, he was more than a little unsatisfied with the short answer. What did he expect? His life story. He was lucky he was talking at all. He scrawled down his thoughts and smiled at Samuel reassuringly. "Lost, huh? Do not worry, Sam. I am 'ere to 'elp find you." He nodded at his own words as if to confirm them.

"Now, ozer zan feeling lost. 'ow 'ave you been? What is your sleeping pattern like? Do you 'ave any dreams?" Dreams were always a good way of seeing into a persons mind, someone should make a movie about that.

Samuel looked at the space between Dr. Artois and himself. Thinking about the question, the sigh asserting itself. However, this time he didn’t immediately respond after it.

“…I… Sleep all night…Most of the day”

He gave a long pause as if debating something internally.
He wouldn’t dream most nights, but when he did it was always the same thing. He would live through the moments of his breakdown, clearly seeing himself assemble the riffle, fire it, see the face of each of his victims reload and repeat.

Sigh

“…No dreams…”

He continued to stare at the nothingness between them.

Leaning downward, Rémy tried to catch the eyes of the other. Wanting to make some sort of sincere eye contact between them. His stare intensified at the conflicted look on Samuel's face and he looked unsatisfied with the answer he was given.

"Samu- ...Sam. If you are not going to be 'onest wiz me zen we will get nowhere" He drummed his pen on his clipboard. "I want you to talk to me. I don' care what it is about, just get some thoughts out of your 'ead and we will work on from zere." The stern expression melted back into a smile.

He sits there for a moment before looking at the other, his eyes full of remorse.

"I relive the day I...."

He breaks eye contact and closes his eyes, as if trying to block out the oh so recent memory.
Shaking his head. He didn't want to remember the horrible thing he did to people, for a brief moment he had become a complete monster and if scared him, because it had been so easy to do.

His eyes softened at the expression on the other man's face, suddenly looking soulful and concerned. He reached out and carefully placed a hand on Samuel's shoulder, gripping it gently but with a certain reassuring presence behind it.

"I am making it our personal goal to get you past zis and get you to start living days as they come." he said with a hopeful smile. "Is zis okay wiz you?" he said, searching for a response.

He looked sharply at the hand, but made no move to get away from the touch, instead he looked up along the arm, across the shoulder and rests finally on Dr. Artois' face. His face looking more than a little haunted by his recent past.

"Can you even get past being a monster?"

His sigh was long and whispy.

Keeps the smile firmly planted across his face, tilting his head a little, trying to coaxe something out of the other man.
"Now, I want you to think carefully. What was your life like before things came to zis. I want you tell me a bit about zat and zen I want you to detail why exactly you did what you did and what lead to it"

He tapped his pen against the clipboard and made a few quick notes before adding, "Remember, no detail is too small or insignificant. I want to 'ear everysing on your mind. Every little sing 'elps."

Samuel shifted in the bed to face the doctor, he lent against the wall. Despite everything he knew that this was his session. And nothing would change if he kept shutting off.

Sigh

"I was an architect; International Structures."

He concerned himself with picking at his sweat pants while he spoke. While he knew he was going to have to relive it all. It didn't mean he would have to enjoy it.

"Mostly worked on design ascetics..."

He was never a big time architect, he never really wanted to be. It brought him a regular, and good pay cheque and was always gave him something different to do.

"Liked working on small homes, in suburbs"

Nodding his head and making a few short notes on his clipboard, Rémy pressed onward, trying to get a little deeper than job descriptions. Even if he had found the comment about his enjoyment of home designing somewhat endearing. Actually, there was not much about this man that did not seem endearing in some manner. If he were in a less professional setting he would have set the clipboard aside and embraced the taller man. Considering this, he wondered if friendly touching could be considered a kind of therapy. This lead him to wonder if Samuel would actually enjoy being hugged.

Tapping the pen on the clipboard, he realised that he had gotten quite far off track and an awkward silence had settled in the room. Brushing it off as a need to think of further questions, Rémy looked up at Samuel once again and looked him in the eyes. "I understand zat zis may be difficult. But I want you to tell me about your family."

Rémy had heard the basics of Samuel's story. He knew that he was close with his Mother and that her dying was warrant enough for a deep depression. However, Rémy had the ...pleasure of being introduced to his Father when Samuel had been checked into the hospital. He did not seem to care so much for the well being of his son as much as he wanted to rid himself of the poor man. All for the greater good, he was clearly a terrible influence.

The patient whated his doctor as he seemed to lose himself in his own thoughts. Continuing to watch him until the moment Rémy asked about his family.

Samuel looked away, his brows knitting in worry as he shook his head slightly.

He didn't particularly want to talk about his father, he wasn't a bad man, just hard to deal with as he was stuck in his old Australian ways. As for his mother... He wasn't sure if he wanted to go down this road yet, even if he knew he would have to do it.

Rémy twisted his mouth ever so slightly, trying not to frown despite wanting to so badly. He stared at Samuel, eyes brimming with concern and confusion. It would be cruel to push him, but he really did need to know what had pushed him over the edge.

He can't help but sigh softly, feeling like he won't make much more progress with this session. It really bothered him that he couldn't continue questioning the other man, he was painfully curious and he liked to move things along quickly. However, this was a delicate case and he had to be careful about what he said. He leaned back a little in the chair, basking in the rays of sunlight that poured through the window. Sometimes he felt a little bit like a flower, no matter how drained he felt, a little sunlight always managed to make him feel better.

Tapping his pen on his lips, he wondered if the same method could be applied to Samuel. He seemed like an outdoor-sy sort of man, afterall. Perhaps being cooped up in a small, dim room was not helping his attitude. Rising out of his chair he held a hand out in front of him for Samuel. "It is dark in 'ere, I do not like it." He reached out and took the other man's hand, giving him a firm tug. "Let us go outside!"

As his doctor watched him and seemed to slowly slip off into his own thoughts, Samuel took this moment to try and burry his own. His mind full of his mothers last hours, his mind had made her look more like a science experiment, wires everywhere. Consuming every inch of her body. She had always been a small woman, and the effects of the cancer made her look insubstantial, as if she should live in a glass box incase a passing breeze sent her flying away. She had been so very pale.

His father barely fared any better. There had barely been a day since the oncologyst had given the father and son the count down on the woman they both loved so dearly, that he didn't have a bottle in his hand. Always an angry drunk the greif had made him worse. If it wasn't for his son being so much taller and stronger than he was at the time he would have been able to at least properly beat him to release his pain. However his fists were always stopped, he was always held back. So he turned to insults of his past job, that he was unemployed now. The even 'the gays' didn't like mama's boys, that he would never become anything other than an utter disapointment to the roberts name, and wasted all his wifes time in rasing him to be so useless.

As hard as he was currently trying he could push these thoughts away. So when his hand was taken and pulled on for him to stand he gave a look of pure surprise and sumbled up, nearly falling over the good doctor as he tried to find himself and his balance.

"wha-, uh? Outside? What?"

His confusion was more apparant than the colour of his hair at this moment. Those few moments before he had utterly lost himself to the world.

If he nodded any faster he would make himself dizzy. "Oui. It is a gorgeous day and being cooped up in 'ere will do you no good!" Fuck the sun, his smile was blindingly bright. "We are going for a walk!"

He patted Samuel on the chest to steady him and moved his hand down between their two figures to grasp Samuel's hand again, taking a step toward the door. He pulled a lanyard out of the collar of his shirt and leant down to unlock the door, tugging Samuel out behind him like an excited dog on a leash. He strode out the halls with an eager aura around him, nodding at nurses and doctors. He didn't let go of Samuel's hand as he guided him toward the gardens of the hospital. They weren't much to look at, but they would do.

Still in the world of confused, Samuel looked down at the smaller man as he helped him balance.

His level of chipper and confidence astounded him. if he had been given the time he would have shrugged at his responce, however he was already dragging him by the hand through corridors. He stared at their hands until they passed the first doctor, glancing up to see what his face was like. He was being pulled too fast to look properly, however even he knew that this scene would look strange, as doctors rarely gave even a comforting pat on the shoulder let alone take a patients hand and lead them outside to a garden.

He couldn't help but feel embarrased at the looks and tried to pull his hand away before too many people saw, he knew there was potential for the doctor, and even for himself to get in troule due to this situation.

The doctor had already earned himself a reputation with his somewhat strange methods. Honestly, he did not care much for what other doctors and nurses thought of him, he was here for the patients and the results. More often than not, his results proved worth the strange lengths he went to.

He felt Samuel hesitate and try to pull away but he kept his hand tight in his own little vice hands. He could smooth over any issues that may or may not arise from their mad dash to the garden. He was always quite good at talking himself out of sticky situations.

Pushing open the doors he lead Samuel into the rather dreary looking gardens. Did they have gardeners here? If so they should be sacked and possibly smacked around a little. The grass was dying and the plants and trees were pathetic looking. The tables and chairs were old and dusty looking and the wired fences loomed over the scene ominously. However, the sun was warm and the fresh air was relieving to breathe in, making it more appealing than the room.

Almost reluctantly, Rémy let go of Samuel's hand and slowed to walk beside him, rather than dragging him. "There, isn't this much nicer?"

Upon stopping outside the first thing Samuel noticed was the air, not stale like his room, or heavy with disinfectant. Closing his eyes he inhaled deeply, letting the fresh air out slowly.

As Rémy took his hand away Samuel looked down at his hand for a moment, he realised that he was in the cool air of the shadows that the building cast. His eyes slowly started taking in their surroundings. Walking more out into the garden the sun properly bathing him in light and heat, he squinted slightly, though it was short lived as his eyes adjusted. Stopping under a tree he reached out and pet the trunk gently, looking up into the branches. He mumbled something to the tree before crouching down to regard a small shrug that looked like it had seen better days. He picked away some of its dead leaves almost absent minded.

Almost forgetting that his doctor was behind him, and even where he was and why he was there as he tried to help this shrub look more respectable.

Samuel became an architect due to the fact he loved to create. He never seemed able to be a carpenter, or a builder. Nothing was ever made to his (or his fathers) definition of perfect. So designing homes and letting others build them seemed like the perfect solution. There was something about using pencils and computer software to create something that would become a grand structure that would give someone not only somewhere to live but somewhere to call home.

When he lived on his own, Samuel had kept a small balcony garden. If he hadn’t made it as an architect he would have tried his hand and designing gardens, because in his mind it was a lot like being an architect. Once you created the plan for how a garden should look, all you had to do was watch it grow and maintain it. It was a subtle beauty that Samuel had a great affection for.

Now this was interesting, Samuel seemed to have forgotten he was there. Perfect, now he could observe his natural behaviour instead of a thinly vieled act that patients put on to win the favours of others. He felt himself smiling softly at the larger man, he had a strangely gentle nature when it came to...well, nature. He watched with piqued interest as he fussed over the trees and shrubs, at that moment he decided taking Samuel out to the garden could definatley be used as some form of motivation. Then again, it could simply be used as a therapy, seeing as he seemed so at ease as he fussed over the plants.

Deciding he should probably continue doing his job, he stepped a little closer and gently cleared his throat. He didn't want to intrude on the scene, he just wanted to ease his way in. Things would be smoother if Samuel was aware that Rémy was now going to be a huge factor of his life.